Busiest May on record for Dublin Airport

A record number of passengers travelled through Dublin Airport in May.

Passenger numbers grew by 13pc last month, with more than 2.2 million people travelling through the airport.

This made it the busiest May ever in the 75-year history of Dublin Airport.

“The latest monthly figures … reported that Dublin Airport passenger traffic continues to grow at around three times the European average,” said Dublin Airport managing director Vincent Harrison.

Almost 1.2 million passengers travelled to and from continental Europe in May, a 12pc increase compared to last year. UK traffic recorded a 13pc increase, with almost 754,000 passengers travelling last month.

Passenger volumes to and from North America grew by 13pc, with almost 234,000 passengers travelling this route sector in May.

Other international traffic, which includes flights to the Middle East, increased by 22pc in May, with more than 56,000 passengers travelling these routes during the month.

More than 6,000 passengers travelled on domestic routes last month, which was a 5pc decrease on last year.

Passenger numbers at Dublin Airport have increased by 14pc in the first five months of this year, as almost nine million passengers used the airport.

The major increase in passenger numbers means that Dublin Airport has already welcomed more than 1.1 million extra passengers so far this year.

“The record growth in passenger numbers is good news for the economy as a recent economic impact study shows Dublin Airport supports almost 100,000 jobs both locally and nationally,” Mr Harrison said.

“Every one million additional passengers at Dublin Airport supports more than 1,000 extra jobs in the industry,” he added.

Last year, 21.7 million passengers travelled through the airport.

Earlier this year, Mr Harrison said that a number of new services would be introduced

at the airport by new airlines such as Ethiopian, Vueling, WOW Air, and Transavia, including six new continental European services, three new transatlantic services, three new UK services, and two new services to Africa.